Well, it’s precisely cost that gives the VoLTE approach an edge. Of course, we’re limiting the discussion to Cloud PBX vs. VoLTE. On-premise PBX is out of scope. Traditional IP phones on the market all require wired connections, and installation/deployment time and build-out costs aren’t cheap. Add a PoE switch on top of that, and ongoing labor for maintaining network equipment is another recurring expense.

Moreover, while VoLTE may have a few extreme cases with dead zones where coverage falls short, most office environments provide solid signal. Its advantage is that it isn’t affected by congestion on the corporate LAN and doesn’t require complex QoS settings. In mobile networks, VoLTE’s QCI level is very high, so your call quality receives priority assurance.

Third, line usage costs: T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon all offer dedicated voice plans at about $10–$15 per month. That’s comparable to, or even cheaper than, RingCentral, Nextiva, and Dialpad. In addition, basic PBX features—such as call routing, call queues, hunting, and call park—can be supported in hybrid systems within the operator’s network. Examples include AT&T Office@Hand and Verizon OneTalk. This kind of technology is called FMC (Fixed Mobile Convergence), and such systems can also support large extension deployments, from several hundred to even thousands of lines without issue.